By Daniel Winningham
The Thursday, May 26, Perry County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees meeting did not include any public comment, but a couple of board members had questions about finances related to the Perry County Health Systems.
Board member Bill Bohnert wanted to know why a treasurer’s report wasn’t included.
“We have no treasurer’s report in these minutes, and going back, do we not do a treasurer’s report, because it is tax money?”
Bohnert questioned the lack of a treasurer’s report for the April board meeting.
“There’s no figures, nothing,” Bohnert said.
A financial report of hospital expenditures was provided to the board of trustees.
“Last month was my first meeting, I just sat back and watched,” Bohnert said. “I see you pull a checkbook out and say, ‘This is how much we have.’
“Well, I don’t know where that money is kept at, I don’t know anything about it, and I’m betting money that nobody on the board knows.”
“Why do we have a treasurer on the trustee board if he doesn’t at least bring a treasurer’s report to the meeting,” Bohnert asked.
“We didn’t have a finished treasurer’s report at the last meeting, because it wasn’t done,” said board president Greg Unger.
Board member Darrell Niswonger serves as the board of trustees’ treasurer.
“We normally don’t have a treasurer’s report,” Niswonger said. “We have an overview.”
Perry County Health Systems chief financial officer Mike Ellis explained to the board members the hospital had a trustees’ account as well as a Perry County Health Systems account.
“I would rather put it in our minutes and saying, ‘OK, this was the expense we had on there this month, whatever, anything you took,” Bohnert said.
Ellis said the account information was open to all five of the Perry County Memorial Hospital board of trustees.
Something simple with transactions and account numbers as well as the account blanace at the time of the monthly meetings
“I understand that Bill, and I agree with that,” Niswonger said.
In the next month, a check will need written for attorney’s fees, according to Niswonger.
“The trustees, before it comes to the Perry County Health Systems (Board), agrees that this money will be spent in this way in the support of the hospital, whether it’s for a new roof, a new ambulance, new piece of equipment, the trustees decided how that tax money is being spent,” Ellis said.
Ellis explained the PCHS in operations will make purchases and come back later with a reimbursement request.
Another scenario is when a PCHS representative approaches the trustees board and a potential purchase.
“We’re going to buy this, how would you like to support this purchase,” Ellis said.
Bohnert told the board members he was under the impression it was the board of trustees’ decision to either approve or disapprove a purchase.
“I’m just trying to figure out if it was only the trustees’ funds that was used to pay for the ambulance,” Bohnert said.
Board member Beth Guth said in prior years the tax revenue was put toward the general funds of the hospital.
“This was a way of deliniating those funds and to have people see that things are being purchased with taxpayers’ money,” Guth said. The board’s April meeting minutes were unanimously approved after a motion by Beth Guth and a second Darrell Niswonger.
NEXT MEETING
The next PCMH Board of Trustees meeting will take place Thursday, June 23, at 6 p.m.
